Singapore 19** , and dissent and war loom on the horizon...

SuLin is doing her dream job: assistant at Singapore's brand new detective agency. Until Bald Bernie decides a 'local girl' can't be trusted with private investigations, and replaces her with a new secretary - pretty, privileged, and white. So SuLin's not the only person finding it hard to mourn Bernie after he's found dead in the filing room. And when her best friend's father is accused, she gets up to some sleuthing work of her own in a bid to clear his name.

Meanwhile, beneath the stifling, cloudless Singaporean summer, earthquakes of chaos and political unrest are breaking out. When a tragic loss shakes SuLin's personal world to its core, she becomes determined to find the truth. But in dark, hate-filled times, truth has a price - and SuLin must decide how much she's willing to pay for it.

Praise for Ovidia Yu:

'A wonderful detective novel . . . a book that introduces one of the most likeable heroines in modern literature and should be on everyone's Must Read list' Scotsman

'Ovidia Yu's teenage Chinese sleuth gives us an insight into a very different culture and time. This book is exactly why I love historical novels' Rhys Bowen

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